Fatherhood
by kendraDrake
Summary: Remy LeBeau is seventeen and has just learned he's going to become a father. AU One-shot from my Smoke and Flames series. If you haven't read "Wisps of Smoke" (and plan to) this does contain a spoiler.


For one of my favorite readers (you know who you are): Thanks for requesting this! I don't think I would have ever thought of telling this part of the story if you hadn't asked. :)

This is my first attempt at a one-shot. Sorry it's so long.

Those of you who are new to my writings, this is part of my "Smoke and Flames" series, so if you need the background, you may want to start with one of my other stories. You may not need it though. In any case, enjoy young Remy Lebeau's journey to fatherhood!

Please R&R and let me know if you have any other angles you'd like me to explore.

* * *

Late February, 1986

Jaleena and Remy made their way downstairs to join the rest of the family for lunch. Laurel was at the stove, Joey was cutting breaD and buttering it, and FireStar was perched on the counter eating a piece of cheese. Crake and Violet were sitting at the table, Violet's feet propped in her fiance's lap. They'd spent the better part of the morning alone. As they entered the kitchen Violet complained, "Geez, I thought you two were never going to come down."

Crake smirked, "Yeah, it's like you to just figured out how to do it or something."

Jaleena flushed, and Remy just snickered and said "Remy can't help it if da ladies find him irresistible!"

Laurel rolled her eyes and turned back to the stove where she was flipping grilled cheese sandwiches. Joey snorted. Remy grabbed Jaleena by the waist to pull her into his arms again when she moved to join the others at the scarred kitchen table. "Seriously though," Violet asked, "What is up with you two? We have barely seen you, and you never let Crake or I in the room. We had to sleep on the couch last night."

Jaleena shrugged as she wrapped her arms around Remy. "Yeah, well, it sounded like you two didn't mind that at all." She winked. "I don't know. There must be something in the water though. My hormones have just been going crazy, and it's not like you and Crake have any room to talk," she teased.

Crake smiled and resumed rubbing Violet's feet. He raised an eyebrow at her in question. She smiled at him and then looked at each of the others in the room. "Well, I guess we do have a little announcement to make." She paused for dramatic effect, and everyone waited anxiously. They were already engaged and had set a wedding date, so everyone was at a loss as to what they could possibly be announcing now. Beaming, Violet announced, "We're having a baby!" Everyone cheered and rushed over to congratulate the new mother and father except for Jaleena and Remy. They stared at each other for a long moment without saying anything both of their eyes wide. Then Remy asked weakly, "Did you jus say dere was sometin' in de water, chere?"

* * *

Three Months Later

"I can't believe we're doing this together!" Violet said as she held up a purple onesie. "It's just so exciting that we'll be having babies together."

"I don't know," Jaleena complained as she cast a glance at her friend's stomach and then her own. "The doctor said we were due at about the same time, but I don't even look like I'm pregnant where you look like you're at trying to hide a cantaloupe under there."

Violet giggled and draped the onesie over her stomach, patting it gently. Remy ducked around to lay a blue one right over the purple one. "Maybe she be havin' twins."

The girls just rolled there eyes and shooed him off to look for cribs, but he lingered nearby to pretend to examine an array of baby shoes. He had been growing increasingly concerned about Jaleena's mental state. She had started out excited about the pregnancy, but as the months went by and she retained her normal shape, she had become more and more depressed and anxious. Most nights she tossed and turned restlessly. He knew that couldn't be good for mother or child.

"Well," Laurel said as she shifted around pieces of clothing in the bargain bin. "The doctor also said that every pregnancy is different and that you're doing just fine, Leena."

Jaleena sighed and threw herself in a rocking chair as she looked around the discount baby boutique. "I know, but it just doesn't feel like I'm even pregnant when I don't look it. I still just feel like there's something wrong." She rested her hand over her stomach and closed her eyes, a pained expression on her face. The two other girls looked at each other, but said nothing. Remy sighed and moved away to join up with the guys.

* * *

A Week Later

Remy, Joey, and Crake sat on the front stoop of the house enjoying the mild weather and escaping the high levels of estrogen that seemed to be dominating their home. Remy was smoking one of his hand-rolled cigarettes and Crake was, uncharacteristically, smoking one as well. "I don't know what happened," Crake complained. "One minute everything's fine, and the next minute, she's crying like I killed her favorite puppy." When Remy snickered, Crake turned around to point of him. "Just wait, mon ami, it will be your turn next."

Remy only smiled, completely unconcerned, "Leena is jus' too sweet and mild mannered to cause any problem. We still jus' as happy as we was before we knew she was havin' de baby. Me and Leena, we be just fine," boasted Remy.

Crake rolled his eyes, and the three sat in silence, just watching the smoke rise into the air for a few more moments.

"We gotta move." This statement came from Joey who was normally the quietest of the bunch.

The other two teens looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?" Crake asked.

"We have to move," Joey repeated. "It's already cramped enough with two couples taking up one bedroom. It's awkward that Laurel, Fire, and I have to share the other. Can you imagine what its going to be like with two babies on top of that? We need a bigger place."

Silence again overtook them as they all considered his words. "I guess you're right," Crake said. "I mean, our house is backed up to other buildings on all sides. The front porch dumps directly into an alleyway. It would be great if we could find a place with the little yard or something for the kids to play in."

Remy nodded, "Dat would be great! Maybe even have a swing set."

"Or a pool so they could swim," Crake added.

"Yeah!" Remy agreed.

Joey sighed. "I think we need to be more realistic than that. None of us have jobs, and a house in the suburbs just isn't in the picture for us."

Crake and Remy came crashing back down to reality. There was silence for a few moments until Remy flicked the butt of his cigarette out in the alley and proclaimed, "Our kids don't need dat stuff anyway. Since we don't work, we can take dem to de park every day. Dis way dey are better at socializing wit' de other kids." Crake just nodded. "I t'ink dis means we going to have to work overtime," Remy added, and all three men locked gazes and nodded. At least in this, they were all united. "We start in de morning."

* * *

A Month Later

Remy felt sick in the pit of his stomach. He sat in the hospital waiting room, clutching his girlfriend's hand. She was staring blankly at the wall, not even registering the fact that Laurel was sitting directly in front of her. Joey was leaning against the wall, watching whatever happened to be on the television. StarFire had taken off as soon as Violet had begun hemorrhaging. Crake was in the examination room with her while the rest of them anxiously waited. Remy pulled Leena closer to his side and placed his free hand over her stomach, which had only begun to round.

* * *

A Few Days Later

"Alright, mon coeur. You be in bed for three days straight now. It be time to get up." Remy tried to make his voice sound firm and unyielding, but Jaleena just rolled over in the bed, giving him her back. Remy sighed in exasperation. "Leena, come on. At least tell Remy what be de problem."

She flopped onto her back to stare at the ceiling, one hand resting on the slight bulge of her stomach. After biting her lip, she whispered, "If I get up something might happen to the baby."

Remy carefully sat down on the edge of the bed, placing his hand over hers on her stomach. "Listen, chere. Remy know how scary things were when Violet had to go to de hospital, but she be fine now. Plus, de doctor has said you and de baby be fine over and over again. We have to trust him. He know what he be talking about."

Leena said nothing and rolled back over on her side, putting her back to him again. After a few moments, she stubbornly said, "We don't know that Remy. I'm not about to risk our baby, so until she's ready to come into this world, I will not leave this bed."

"Damnit, Leena," he said standing up in frustration. He didn't know what to do anymore. "You're completely over reacting to dis. You goin' to be pregnant for another three months. You can't stay in bed for three months; it be no good for de baby." She just grunted in response.

Remy walked to the window as he ran his fingers through his hair and sighed, trying to calm himself down. From the other side of the room, he said "Leena, I know you be scared. Remy be scared, too. But we can't just hide from dis. We have to get ready. We goin' to be moving into de new apartment. We got a nursery to decorate. Violet want to have one of d'ose shower tings. None of dat will happen if you don't get out of bed."

When she didn't move or respond, he walked back to the bed to lay down next to her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the back of her neck. "Remy be here wit' you every step of de way. Remy not goin' nowhere."

Jaleena took a long slow breath and then began to cry softly. "I'm just so scared. I don't know what to do. I don't know how to take care of her. I don't know how to be a mom. I don't know anything! How can we be parents when we didn't even have parents to take care of us?"

Remy kissed the back of her neck again. "Well dat be easy, chere. We just be ourselves and do everyting we can to make dis baby happy. If we love her, dat be enough. Dat be more den what we had."

Jaleena sniffled a little, rubbing at her wet face, and turned around to face him. She wiggled closer until their noses touched and she could stare directly into his black and red eyes. Remy lifted his hand to brush some hair back behind her ear. "We goin' to be okay, cherie. Remy promise you dat. All three of us, we goin' to be just fine."

* * *

Three Month Later

Remy stood in the doorway of the new apartment's kitchen, looking into the living room. The apartment was spacious, if a little run down, offering three bedrooms and a dining room that had been converted to another bedroom that would serve as the nursery-though StarFire was demanding that she share the room with the babies once they came. He, Crake, and Joey had made their escape hours before when the girls had started playing ridiculous games with clothespins. He hadn't wanted to stay away very long though, and he was glad that he'd popped back in to see the smile on Leena and Violet's faces as they opened the gifts their friends had brought to the baby shower. Violet had bounced back well after the near-miss, and she and Leena had begun to rely on each other to stay positive, making plans and hypothesizing about the babies. As he watched Leena, who was now just as round as Violet, laugh over a tiny cat costume someone had given her, he smiled and turned on his heel to head back outside, leaving the girls to their revelry.

* * *

About a Month Later

Jaleena and Remy stood in the hallway of the hospital, looking through the window down at little Lee, Violet and Crake's new son. Remy wrapped his arms around his wife, resting his hands on her stomach as they smiled down at the sleeping baby. Lee had been born sometime in the middle of the previous night. Somehow, Violet and Crake had managed to leave the apartment without telling anyone that she had gone into labor. The rest of the family had rushed to the hospital as soon as they'd found the note that morning. Personally, Remy thought it was probably for the best that Jaleena hadn't gone through the stress and worry of the waiting process. Smiling, he kissed the top of her head and murmured, "It won't be long now."

To his surprise, she jerked in his arms and then moved away from him, her face bright red. "What happen?" he asked, immediately alarmed.

Jaleena smiled weakly and explained, "Uhmm...You're right, Remy. It won't be long now. My water just broke."

* * *

Five Hours Later

Everyone sat in Violet's hospital room, which had now become Violet and Jaleena's hospital room. StarFire and the guys were playing cards, Violet was napping after having just fed Lee, and Jaleena and Laurel were watching some murder mystery on the television.

"Ugh," Jaleena grunted, leaning forward and cringing as another contraction hit. "This is getting to be just annoying now. And boring. Having a baby is annoying and boring." Laurel looked over at her and smiled, and Remy didn't even look up from his hand of cards. Jaleena had said essentially the same thing every time she'd had a contraction for the past few hours. They weren't coming closely or regularly, and he'd found early on that if he coddled her she either cried or screamed at him, so he was keeping his distance. In the process, he was trying to distract himself by removing his fellow game-players of some of their cash.

Laurel reached over to pat her hand, "At least that one seemed to be a little sooner than the last. So who do you think is the killer?" She asked, trying to draw her friend's attention back to the movie they were watching. Remy let out his breath slowly when Jaleena easily slipped into a conversation with Laurel, speculating who killed the aging dowager.

* * *

Two Hours Later

Something was wrong. Remy knew it. He was standing outside the hospital emergency exit (which he'd propped open) so that he could smoke a cigarette. It had been too long, and Jaleena still wasn't having normal contractions. He'd noticed the doctor was visiting more regularly, and everyone was getting tense. He'd had to get out of the room before he broke down from the tension. He looked down at his hands, unsurprised to find them shaking so badly that the cherry fell from his cigarette. Cursing, he tossed the paper down and extracted a new one, struggling to get his lighter to work. Just as he finally got it to catch, he heard footsteps pounding down the hallway toward him. He ducked his head inside to see Crake running toward him, his eyes wide in panic. Remy dropped the cigarette and ran past him back toward the room.

* * *

One Hour Later

Remy stood by Jaleena's side, holding her hand. She was swimming in and out of consciousness. He couldn't understand why every time she opened her eyes and saw him, she smiled brightly. They were going to cut her open to bring his daughter into the world, they had told him. It was the only way. Remy just held her hand and stared down at her, focusing on every breath she took. He couldn't imagine what would happen if he lost her. Two years. That's all the time they'd had together so far. He needed more. He felt the tears sliding down his face, landing on their joined hands. He brought her fingers to his lips, no longer paying attention to what the doctors and nurses were saying, but registering and not translating phrases like "Elle a perdu trop de sang" or "Vite! Vite!"

Jaleena slowly opened her eyes again to smile at him once more, her dry lips parting so that she could whisper, "We're going to be okay, Remy. Don't cry. The three of us will be fine. Remember?" He leant forward to press his lips to hers, not able to force any words out of his tight throat. When he pulled back, she had fallen back into unconsciousness.

* * *

Three Hours Later

Remy stood outside the viewing window in the hospital again, staring down at the dark-haired girl fussing on the other side of the glass. He heard Crake approach and felt the cup of coffee that was thrust into his hand. He didn't say anything, still just staring down at the child in amazement. Crake laughed and hit him hard on the back.

"Did you ever figure back when we met that we'd have kids together?" His friend chuckled, sipping his own coffee. Lee had just been returned after his evening feeding, and the nurse smiled and waved at the two fathers as she placed Lee in the bassinet next to Remy and Jaleena's daughter. Remy shook his head in response to Crake's question, but accepted another hearty pat on the back. Crake was still riding on the high of becoming a father, but Remy was still in shock after the entire ordeal. "We're getting ready for another great adventure, mon ami," Crake said. "Cheer up. Besides, I heard they were going to be bringing Jaleena out of the recovery room soon."

* * *

Remy was waiting when Jaleena was wheeled back into the room. She was followed by a nurse holding a bundle in her arms. Once Jaleena was settled in her own bed, the nurse handed the baby to Remy. He wasn't quite sure what to do with her, and felt chargrined when he found Jaleena watching him in amusement. He leaned down to settle the baby girl in her mother's arms, deciding it was a much safer place. Jaleena smiled as she pushed back the blankets to look at her daughter. She grinned up at him. "She's so beautiful."

He smiled down at her, reaching down to brush one finger against the baby's soft skin. "Oui. She be amazing. Jus' like her mama." He moved to press his lips to Jaleena's cheek. "How you feelin'?"

She beamed up at him. "Jubilant. It's just so wonderful. Everything is perfect."

He chuckled, feeling the tension leaving his body. She really seemed fine; both of them seemed fine. "Den dat's what we'll call her." He grinned at his wife's questioning look before returning his gaze to his daughter. "She be our miracle. Jubilation LeBeau, and you know what? We really are goin' to be fine. All three of us."


End file.
